istanbul again

So now I'm back in Istanbul, it's about September 21.
Each day I'd move my photos to a storage device, so each day
is now on my computer as a separate folder ~ or
sometimes 2, when I used both cameras.
In 'real time' now I'm starting to make new works from
these many thousands of photos, as well as from the way
the mental images cross fertilise.

Did I mention before how I love the walls in Istanbul?
Some have stood for longer than trees, & you know how
strong trees are to touch. So they are more akin to mountains.
Mountains that speak as you pass by..

miki soejima's photos ~ intriguing stories

castle

Overlooking the lake, on stone cliffs is the old castle.
We went up there for a splendid sunset on the last evening
in Van. Below, there'd been at least one bloody conflict.
A small mosque by the great Sinan is being restored.

synaptic stimuli

armenian church

We went across Lake Van to the medieval church where there
was an historic church service the next day, Sept 19.
It's a delightful building. We'd met the co-publishers of a
new book on Aghtamar church, half of which
is devoted to colour photos & architectural drawings.

It was then I realised I'd made a drawing from an old book,
perhaps 40 years ago, of one of the reliefs below left.
(I've made about 3 drawings with a christian reference, ever)

I doubt if it means anything except that the figures carved
all round this 10th century church are a delight.
It has an altogether happy feel to it, on it's own little
island on the beautiful lake ~ in spite of the tragic history.

on foot

We had a remarkable day walking in Van. People so friendly
& generous ~ sweet! Flew back to Istanbul 2 days later.

One man asked why I was photographing a broken house,
when I said because I found it beautiful, he shrugged,
clearly thought I was a bit crazy.

missed connections

4th century

Near Van, in an old village full of beautiful children are the
remains of a very early Armenian orthodox church.
The back section has a strong presence;
all places of worship, whatever religion,
seem to achieve that over the centuries, no?

intense messages in the photographs of taryn simon

van museum

With all the side trips we didn't get to see much of Van at
first. It has a small but charming museum. I particularly
liked the figures in the courtyard, found only 12 years ago
in Hakkari, carved there some time between the 15th
& 11th century BC. They have that amused look of
so much naive art, though the times may have been
quite serious then, too.

more details on the Hakkari stelae

dogubeyazit

After the beauty of the Ishak Pasa Palace, the nearby city of
Dogubeyazit is.. well, not very attractive, or if it is
I didn't see that part

We went into a depressing market, full of tacky stuff,
isn't it odd how that sometimes makes interesting photos?

goodisdead